America’s 19 Best Vegan Restaurants Have Been Chosen. Here Are the Winners.

In Oakland, a new all-mushroom restaurant is serving up KFC-style bowls and saucy lasagna to hungry weekend diners. In Orlando, a 100-percent vegan Cuban spot is racking up local awards for its sour orange-lime-marinated mojo pork and Malecón-style fish sandwiches. And all across the country, eateries are bringing next-level plant-based eats (think Texas toast tuna melts in Detroit, Indian-Mediterranean fusion in Los Angeles, and caviar-stuffed croissants in Manhattan) to hungry vegan and veg-curious diners alike, proving beyond a doubt that plant-powered eating is still hot. So we say, it’s time to celebrate!

VegNews editors gathered more than 300 vegan brick-and-mortar nominees, and readers voted to crown the best of the best. The votes are in: which city is taking home the most wins? Who was named Chef of the Year? And which restaurant did you choose as the best in the entire country? We present to you … the fourth annual VegNews Restaurant Awards.

RELATED: The VegNews Restaurant Awards: Readers Choose the Best Vegan Eateries of 2025

Plant Power Fast Food

Best Vegan Fast-Food Restaurant

Plant Power Fast Food
California & Nevada

Four years in a row, VegNews readers have spoken and named this San Diego-born chain the best when it comes to quick, convenient vegan food. Is it the saucy, crispy Western Burger with onion rings and bacon? The In-N-Out-esque Iconic Fries layered with melted cheddar, grilled onions, and secret sauce? The impossibly thick oat milk “Blizzards”? Yes, yes, and yes.

2nd Place: Slutty Vegan (Multiple Locations)
3rd Place: Mr. Charlie’s (Multiple Locations)
Editors’ Vote: Mr. Charlie’s (Multiple Locations)

Next Level Veggie Grill

Best Vegan Fast-Casual Restaurant

Next Level Veggie Grill
Nationwide

The “All-American Vegan” renaissance is here, and it’s powered by two fan-favorite vegan forces. When Oregon’s Next Level Burger acquired the famed Veggie Grill brand, it birthed Next Level Veggie Grill, a fun and casual eatery specializing in comforting handhelds, fresh salads, wraps, bowls, superfood smoothies, and desserts. And now as one, Next Level Veggie Grill is giving America a new reason to crave vegan.

2nd Place: Chloe’s (New York, NY)
3rd Place: Native Foods (California & Colorado)
Editors’ Vote: Winter Park Biscuit Co. (Orlando, FL)

Monster Vegan

Best Casual Vegan Restaurant

Monster Vegan
Philadelphia, PA

From the classic monster movies played as backdrop to the jack-o’-lantern candles to the skeleton standing in at the DJ booth—Monster Vegan is campy, a bit creepy, and designed to be craveable. And with a menu with everything from souped-up cheesesteaks and hoagies to butter chicken and plant-based clams and linguine, it’s no wonder horror fans and vegans are hooked.

2nd Place: Follow Your Heart Cafe (Canoga Park, CA)
3rd Place: BeeWali’s Vegan AF (Los Angeles, CA)
Editors’ Vote: The Plot (Oceanside, CA)

Jakob Layman

Best Vegan Upscale Restaurant

Crossroads Kitchen
Los Angeles, CA & Las Vegas, NV

After 13 years in the spotlight, Crossroads Kitchen continues to raise the bar for vegan fine dining. New sleek booths and banquettes have refreshed its Los Angeles dining room, while special dinners with culinary heavyweights like Jet Tila, Cat Cora, and Michael Voltaggio keep the concept of elevated dining exciting. With polished service, ambitious plates, and plenty of Hollywood history—Crossroads remains the destination for a special night out.

2nd Place: Pura Vita (West Hollywood, CA)
3rd Place: Anixi (New York, NY)
Editors’ Vote: Little Saint (Healdsburg, CA)

Doomie’s Home Cookin’

Best Vegan Diner

Doomie’s Home Cookin’
Los Angeles, CA

Late-night LA eaters had a scare this year when Hollywood institution Doomie’s lost its Fountain Avenue location after landlords pushed out the restaurant for redevelopment. But luckily, it found a new home—a colorful, brighter location on storied Melrose Avenue where it’s doling out loaded cheesy fries, gargantuan chicken sandwiches, and hand-scooped milkshakes without missing a beat. Doomsday averted: long live Doomie’s.

2nd Place: The Modern Vegan (Las Vegas, NV)
3rd Place: The Tasty (Philadelphia, PA)
Editors’ Vote: The Tasty (Philadelphia, PA)

Boxcar Pizza

Best Vegan Pizzeria

Boxcar Pizza
Portland, OR

“Keep Portland Weird” may be The Rose City’s unofficial motto, but Boxcar Pizza takes the command seriously. Which is why on any given weekend, you can expect out-of-the-box creations like its thick Detroit-style pies piled with fried chicken, coleslaw, and honey mustard; jerk soy curls, pineapple, and barbecue sauce; and yellow curry chicken, banh mi pickles, and sweet chili mayo. Who knew weird tasted so good?

2nd Place: Donna Jean (San Diego, CA)
3rd Place: Double Zero (New York, NY)
Editors’ Vote: Paranormal Pizza (Bethlehem, PA)

Ben & Esther’s

Best Vegan Deli

Ben & Esther’s
Portland, OR & San Diego, CA

Ben & Esther’s has mastered the art of the vegan Jewish deli, from perfectly schmeared and loxed bagels to towering Reubens, knishes, latkes, matzo ball soup, and plenty of pickles. Plant lovers looking for the full-fledged deli experience—with all the salty, schmaltzy, carb-loaded comfort you could hope for—you’ve found your spot.

2nd Place: Maciel’s Plant-Based Butcher & Deli (Los Angeles, CA)
3rd Place: The Butcher’s Son (Berkeley, CA)
Editors’ Vote: The Herbivorous Butcher (Minneapolis, MN)

Linda Pianigiani Photography

Best Vegan Italian Restaurant

Pura Vita
West Hollywood, CA

Good Italian food has never needed much reinvention, and Pura Vita knows it. Diners return to this eight-year-old landmark for its housemade ravioli, silky cacio e pepe, elegantly layered eggplant parm, and Neapolitan-style pizzas with blistered crusts—all made with plants, yes, but just as timeless and perfected as the originals.

2nd Place: Tarantino’s Vegan (Las Vegas, NV)
3rd Place: Monster Vegan (Philadelphia, PA)
Editors’ Vote: Pura Vita (West Hollywood, CA)

Spicy Moon

Best Vegan Asian Restaurant

Spicy Moon
New York, NY

Spicy Moon is taking over New York, one spicy, savory plate at a time. With a new Long Island City outpost joining its Manhattan empire—and a Bed-Stuy location on the way—there are more chances than ever to dig into earthy cumin tofu, chili oil-slicked dan dan noodles, and numbing dry pot. Plus, with bakeries, cafés, bar programs, and rooftop dining joining the expansion plans, the Spicy Moon universe is getting deliciously crowded.

2nd Place: Chef Kenny’s Dim Sum (Las Vegas, NV)
3rd Place: Alice & Friends (Chicago, IL)
Editors’ Vote: Spicy Moon (New York, NY)

Planta

Best Vegan Sushi Restaurant

Planta
Multiple Locations

Planta’s next move? Bigger, bolder flavors and even more locations. The Miami-headquartered chain sharpened its focus in 2026 to become a US-exclusive brand, with its sights set on expanding the reach of its upscale, globally inspired menu from its current California, New York, Chicago, and DC outposts to new cities like San Francisco, Seattle, and Portland. Get your chopsticks ready: unagi eggplant, ahi watermelon, and carrot salmon rolls are coming.

2nd Place: Beyond Sushi (New York, NY)
3rd Place: Shizen (San Francisco, CA)
Editors’ Vote: Ma-Kin Sushi (Agoura Hills, CA)

Souley Vegan

Best Vegan Soul Food Restaurant

Souley Vegan
Oakland, CA

A year into its triumphant return to Oakland, Souley Vegan is firmly in its rebirth era, with plenty to celebrate. Chef Tamearra Dyson’s plant-based Creole cooking now has more room to shine, with expanded hours, Sunday brunch buffets complete with DJs spinning live music, and a menu packed with mouthwatering Southern staples like okra gumbo, Louisiana hot links, and Cajun spaghetti.

2nd Place: Dirty Lettuce (Portland, OR)
3rd Place: Soul Veg City (Chicago, IL)
Editors’ Vote: The Land of Kush (Baltimore, MD)

Tacotarian

Best Vegan Latin Restaurant

Tacotarian
Las Vegas, NV & San Diego, CA

Seventeen tacos, two cities, and more locations on the way: Tacotarian doesn’t mess around when it comes to helping vegan Mexican go mainstream. Born in Las Vegas and inspired by Mexico City, the fast-growing chain serves everything from saucy al pastor and chili-braised jackfruit barbacoa to crispy avocado Baja tacos. And with franchising opportunities in the works, expect to see a whole lot more Tacotarian in the near future.

2nd Place: Mis Tacones (Portland, OR)
3rd Place: Penelope’s Vegan Taqueria (Chicago, IL)
Editors’ Vote: The Cocinita (Miami, FL)

Cafe Gratitude

Best Vegan Healthy Restaurant

Cafe Gratitude
Los Angeles, CA

If there’s anywhere that can turn a healthy meal into a full-on affirmation sesh, it’s Los Angeles. At Café Gratitude, special collaborations (don’t miss wellness influencer Radhi Devlukia’s limited-time Ayurvedic menu), organic ingredients, and dishes with names like “I Am Whole” and “I Am Mindful” help fuel LA’s health obsessives—and anybody else looking for a nourishing, plant-forward meal.

2nd Place: Le Botaniste (New York, NY)
3rd Place: Caravan of Dreams (New York, NY)
Editors’ Vote: Trilogy Sanctuary (La Jolla, CA)

Donut Friend

Best Vegan Doughnut Shop

Donut Friend
Los Angeles, CA

Donut Friend has been satisfying Los Angeles’ sweet tooth since 2013, when musician Mark Trombino traded drum kits for doughnut pans and opened his DIY pastry playground in Highland Park. More than a decade later, the shop is still serving up its hardcore- and pop-punk-inspired doughnuts, from triple chocolate Fudgegazi bismarcks to the Saves the Danish bullseye filled with cream cheese and blueberry jam.

2nd Place: Doe Donuts (Portland, OR)
3rd Place: Dottie’s Donuts (Philadelphia, PA)
Editors’ Vote: Vegan Doughnut Company (Lakewood, OH)

Like No Udder

Best Vegan Ice Cream Spot

Like No Udder
Providence, RI

Providence’s Like No Udder is doing dairy-free ice cream the old-fashioned way: delicious. Recently named the best ice cream shop in all of Rhode Island, vegan or not, Like No Udder now takes home this national title thanks to its menu of small-batch scoops, swirls of soft serve, ice cream sandwiches, shakes, floats, ice cream-topped fruity slushes, and endlessly customizable Dairy Queen-inspired “Unicorns.”

2nd Place: Kate’s Ice Cream (Portland, OR)
3rd Place: Awan (West Hollywood & Los Angeles, CA)
Editors’ Vote: Runaway Cow (Chicago, IL)

Vegan Treats

Best Vegan Bakery

Vegan Treats
Bethlehem, PA

At Vegan Treats, dessert comes with options—dozens upon dozens of them, to be exact. Danielle Konya’s Bethlehem bakery has spent two decades perfecting an enormous lineup of treats, with something to sate any palate. In the mood for an oatmeal banana chocolate chip cookie, or a raspberry white chocolate brownie? How about a strawberry crunch cannoli, a fluffy coconut bun, or a whole French silk pie? It’s indulgence taken to the next level—and it’s the best in America.

2nd Place: Cinnaholic (Nationwide)
3rd Place: Houlden’s Rise Above (Tucson, AZ)
Editors’ Vote: Délice de Bernay (New York, NY)

Grindcore House

Best Vegan Coffee Shop

Grindcore House
Philadelphia, PA

Sixteen years in, Grindcore House is still Philadelphia’s caffeinated punk-rock institution. The all-vegan South Philly mainstay serves its own signature roasted coffee alongside bagels, tofu breakfast sandwiches, and hearty deli-style fare, all with a soundtrack that thumps harder than your morning. Add its tight-knit community and unapologetically DIY spirit, and there’s plenty to celebrate about this Philly original.

2nd Place: Timeless Coffee (Oakland, CA)
3rd Place: Coffee and Plants (Studio City, CA)
Editors’ Vote: Clownboy Coffee (Rochester, NY)

James Tran

Best Vegan Bar

Mothership
San Diego, CA

Mothership has crash-landed on an uncharted planet and, frankly, seems pretty happy about it. The San Diego bar’s elaborate sci-fi universe imagines a stranded space crew making a new home among tropical plants and intoxicating spirits, with the spaceship itself transformed into a psychedelic watering hole with excellent cocktails, stellar bites, and absolutely no return flight.

2nd Place: Ladybird (New York, NY)
3rd Place: Charlie was a sinner. (Philadelphia, PA)
Editors’ Vote: Ladybird (New York, NY)

Heidi Calvert

Best Vegan Chef

Tara Punzone
Pura Vita—West Hollywood, CA

Italian food and hospitality are in Tara Punzone’s DNA. Raised in a Brooklyn Italian-American family with neighborhood sandwich shop owners for grandparents, Punzone first dreamed of opening a vegan Italian restaurant at just 12 years old. Fast-forward through jobs at some of the country’s best vegan restaurants (like New York’s Pure Food & Wine and Los Angeles’ Real Food Daily) plus a stint living in Rome to learn about Italian flavors, Pura Vita was born. Since the restaurant and wine bar’s opening in 2018, Punzone has become a bona fide staple in the Los Angeles food scene. And with her 2025 cookbook Vegana Italiana, she brings her food philosophy into home kitchens across the world, cementing Punzone as one of the defining voices in vegan Italian cooking.

2nd Place: Haley Duren (Long Count—New York, NY)
3rd Place: Tal Ronnen (Crossroads Kitchen—Los Angeles, CA)
Editors’ Vote: Tara Punzone (Pura Vita—West Hollywood, CA)

Fungi Foods

Best New Vegan Restaurant

Fungi Foods
Oakland, CA

For Jake Stolz, mushrooms are at the heart of everything. Having only grown his first ‘shroom in 2022, the Oakland entrepreneur’s trajectory is as fast-growing as his hallmark oysters. An apartment-born mini mushroom operation soon took root and blossomed into a full-scale farm. Then, Fungi Foods was created as a pop-up, serving fried mushroom wings and sandwiches at local farmers’ markets. And now, Stolz’s brick-and-mortar is showcasing all the versatility mushrooms have to offer, slinging everything from loaded mac and cheese and lasagna to KFC-style mashed potato bowls and Pittsburgh Caesars—umami-rich salads topped with oyster mushroom anchovies and a pile of crispy fries. It’s a mushroom renaissance, and Fungi Foods is just getting started.

2nd Place: Not Ya Mama’s Vegan Café (Salem, MA)
3rd Place: Mother Other (Denver, CO)
Editors’ Vote: Secret Vegan Kitchen (Oceanside, NY)

Crossroads Kitchen

Best Vegan Restaurant in America

Crossroads Kitchen
Los Angeles, CA & Las Vegas, NV

There are vegan restaurants, and then there’s Crossroads Kitchen. With locations in Los Angeles and Las Vegas, Chef Tal Ronnen’s fine-dining fixture has spent more than a decade proving that plant-based dining can be ambitious, expansive, and downright fun without ever feeling like a compromise. The menu covers an impressive amount of ground, from inventive takes on meat and seafood to handmade pastas, indulgent sides, creative desserts, and a brunch spread that goes especially big in Vegas. With its eighth consecutive VegNews Restaurant Award win, Crossroads proves it remains the touchstone for modern vegan dining, with the influence and staying power to make plant-based food part of the mainstream conversation.

2nd Place: Monster Vegan (Philadelphia, PA)
3rd Place: Pura Vita (West Hollywood, CA)
Editors’ Vote: Little Saint (Healdsburg, CA)